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With your KG800 Chocolate multimedia phone you get a USB cable to link it to your PC or Mac plus a CD of PC software (see part 1 of my review of this gorgeous phone for general pros, cons, tips etc. For a photo of how Lara Croft might wear this phone, see this post!). It also has Bluetooth connectivity. But its file storage capacity is limited to 128 MB.

This post is meant for the LG KG800 Chocolate phone but I've heard that a lot of this applies to other LG phones too. I've not tested that personally so if you want to try it do so at your own risk. The software (and manuals) for the main LG phone models in the UK, like the KG320, KG810, KG920 etc, can be downloaded from the uk.lgmobile.com site.

You can:A. copy to your Chocolate phone MP3 or other audio files for ringtones or for the MP3 player, or transfer pics, videos and text files to it for viewing or as wallpaperB. backup to PC the photos and videos that you've taken with the phoneC. use the phone as an extra removable drive, to transport files between different PCsD. use the phone as a modem for your PC e.g. laptop (LG Internet Cube)E. copy or synchronise contacts, diary and notes between phone and PC (LG PC Sync)F. get extra ring tones and wallpaper from the supplied software (LG Contents Bank)

But a major source of problems for users is that, when using the USB cable between phone and computer, there are two, yes two, entirely separate methods of connection, reflecting 2 different modes the phone can operate in:

as a removable drive, like a USB flash drive or USB key (what LG call "mass storage mode"), or

as a modem.

To do A to C, you can use the phone as a removable drive - just connect it via the USB cable to your PC or Mac (yes this USB drive element works fine with Macs, see thesecomments), covered below. See the My Stuff section of the manual and also this separate "USB mass storage" manual.

But for D to F, getting a working connection between the Chocolate phone to your PC isn't as straightforward as it should be, because you have to use the phone as a modem for D to F to work, which means installing modem software on your PC (the LG software is PC-only, sorry Mac/Linux users) and taking some other fiddly steps to get the phone to talk to the LG-supplied Contents Bank software. So I deal with the best way (for Windows XP anyway) below.

Basic USB connection - for MP3s etc

If you just want to do A to C above, FIRST make sure the phone is on and in the basic state it's in when you first power on (i.e. on the "home screen", and not in any menu items). Do not at any stage close the phone slider, always leave it open.

Then, connect the phone to the PC or Mac via the USB cable. You should get a message on the phone screen with a yellow background saying "Do not disconnect the cable without the proper operation USB If you use modem select Connectivity-modem". Again keep the phone open.

The KG 800 will appear as an extra "Removable Disk" in My Computer/Windows Explorer (or the Mac equivalent), with a folder called My Media which has some subfolders (your mileage may vary):

Music

Others

Photos

Text and

Videos.

(It may not work in Windows 98 unless you install drivers - I have XP which doesn't need them, and I don't know if LG provide drivers or not.)

You can then copy music, image or video files etc from computer to phone and vice versa via My Computer/Windows Explorer or other file manager (there's free software to convert 3GP to AVI if you want to transfer videos to your computer and play them there). (I don't know if this works for Windows 98 users or if extra software needs to be installed first for this.)

But some folders on the Chocolate are annoyingly invisible, so you can't transfer e.g. voice recording files from phone to computer, on my system at least.Also no system files are visible, and there are a few gotchas to watch for:

Folder sensitivity - where to put music files and other files

MP3s and other audio files: you must copy MP3s to the Music folder, video files to the Videos folder within My Media, text files to the Text folder, or they won't play or display. The types of music files the Chocolate can play are listed in Part 1 specifications.

Photos and pictures: Don't copy pics to the Photos folder (which is reserved for pics taken with the Chocolate), you won't be able to view them there - put them in the Others folder. (You can however copy pics from the Photos folder to your computer for backup or viewing.)

The phone won't display JPGs bigger than 460k or GIFs over 100k.

You can use pics you've uploaded into the Others folder as wallpaper, see further below. But if you want to use an image as wallpaper it can't be bigger than a certain size (the official LG info is contradictory, I'm not sure if the limit is 100k as per pg. 6 of the storage manual or 30k as per p.73 of the main manual). See part 1 Specifications and also Images.

Files for transporting

If you're using the phone as a USB key type device, put the files in the Others folder - that's the best place for them.

Disconnecting

You shoudn't just unplug the phone or cable when you're through, with a PC at least. Most people will be familiar with the process but if not, in your system tray at the bottom right of the PC screen you need to rightclick the icon, then choose Safely Remove Hardware:

Then you'll get a popup box something like this (depending on your own setup):

You want to choose USB Mass Storage Device, but beware if you've more than one removable drive attached to your PC to pick the correct one for the phone. When you highlight it in the list and click Stop and you see this, you'll have got the KG800 phone:

Click OK and you'll see:

Now you can disconnect the phone or its cable from the PC.

The LG software on the CD

To use the free ringtones and images provided by LG, and also in order to transfer Java games/apps from PC to phone, you have to install the LG software first. (Unfortunately for Mac users, it's PC only.)

Contents Bank - extra free ringtones and pics (for wallpaper etc) you can download to your Chocolate phone (you can use Contents Bank to transfer Java games to your phone too, after some tweaking - see below)

Internet Cube - to use your KG800 as a modem for your laptop to access the Internet

PC Sync - to access and edit your phonebook, schedule and memo on the PC

USB modem driver.

Contents Bank is the most useful for most people. But to get Contents Bank to work you need to:

install the required software including the modem driver, AND

follow a very precise order of steps to put your phone in modem mode and connect it to the PC (fiddly, I know, but get it wrong and it won't work).

I repeat: to use the Contents Bank software properly, you have to install it plus the modem driver, even if you don't plan to use the phone as a modem (that's a bit of a misnomer), because you do in fact have to put the phone in "modem mode" in order to for the Contents Bank software to work. (It's easiest and probably best just to install all the software in one go.)

Here's the howto. (Click on any of the pics to get a larger image.)

DON'T try to connect phone to PC yet. (Well you could, but you'll be limited in what you can do with it, i.e. just A to C in the list above, until you finish the steps below. Plus, if you try to use LG Content Bank etc, without installing the modem driver, you'll get Error CME-250 and other things...)

First, do this:

1. Install the software from the supplied CD (or download it from here, unzip then install). It should run automatically when you insert the CD but if not just view it in My Computer or Windows Explorer and doubleclick Setup.exe. I'd skip the intro if I were you... pick the KG800 phone, English seems the only choice on my CD.

Then when you get to the following, make sure EVERYTHING is ticked particularly the last item, even if you aren't planning to use the Chocolate as a modem for your laptop (you'll see why later):

2. Check it's installed properly by inserting the CD again (or clicking Setup.exe) and picking Modify, making sure it's all ticked and trying again. It took me several gos to get the modem to install, go figure.

3. Do NOT try to connect the phone to the computer yet - this is important, Contents Bank and PC Sync won't work if you try to connect the phone to the computer before you do these next things. Switch the phone on. DON'T plug in the USB cable yet. Go to the menu Settings, Connectivity, Modem and pick Yes for "Do you want to activate modem"? Do NOT slide the phone closed, leave it open (and keep it open during the entire process). Do NOT launch Contents Bank or PC Sync on your PC yet, leave them closed.

4. Go back to the main "home" screen of the phone by pressing Back, Back and Back on the phone (UPDATED 8 Apr 2007: Alan reports that, on his phone anyway, backing up turns his modem off; in his case he connects to the PC straight after activating the modem and it works. Do whatever works for your phone, obviously, and if one way doesn't work try the other ). Leave the phone on (and slider open - don't close the slider at any point during the attempted transfer or you'll kill it). Again make sure Contents Bank and PC Sync on the PC are NOT open. Now you can connect the phone to PC via the supplied USB cable. (If you haven't installed the modem driver properly before, you'll get all sorts of new hardware found etc errors. Just try step 2 again till it works!)

5. Then, and only then, should you fire up LG Contents Bank or PC Sync - there will be shortcuts from your Start menu to those programs, as usual. (I'm not going to cover Internet Cube in this post). Leave the phone open throughout.

LG Contents Bank

The next thing you need to do, after (NOT before) you've installed the software, activated the modem on the phone and connected the phone to the PC as detailed above, is to check the Contents Bank connection is correct - in the Contents Bank's Tool menu, pick Option. Under Setting, click the dropdown list for Port and choose the one that says LG USB Cable (COM something - mine is 9 but yours may differ, the main thing is to pick LG USB Cable):

Baud rate doesn't really seem to matter. Then click OK, and in the main window click the Connect icon in the middle of the window.

You can preview ringtones (menu View, Melody or click the icon) or images (menu View, Picture or click the icon).

Check out the folders on the left for ringtones you can listen to ("Buzz", "Classics", "LG Creations"):

Just doubleclick on a ringtone name to hear what it sounds like:

When you hear a ringtone you want, just click on it on the left (you can hold down Ctrl and click more than one), then click the Download icon in the middle of the window to download it to your Chocolate phone. If you get a Timeout popup dialogue box you may need to click Connect again to make sure the phone is properly connected (as if you connect the phone, then don't do anything for a while, the connection is terminated). (If you keep getting Timeout errors, try disconnecting and turning the phone off and shutting down Contents Bank. Then go through steps 3 to 5 above and then launch Contents Bank again. It may take several tries, be warned!)

Those ringtones are all in MMF format or MIDI format. If you want to use your own MMF or MIDI ringtones, before you connect the phone just copy the desired files to the RingTone subfolder of your Contents Bank folder on your computer (on mine it's C:\Program Files\LGGSM\LGContentsBank\Contents\RingTone\ with subfolders for Buzz, etc). You can even create new subfolders on your computer, as long as they're in the LGGSM\LGContentsBank\Contents\RingTone folder.

For wallpaper, again you can open the different folders on the left (there are different themes like cute animals (kittens, awwww), vegetables if your thing is holding ripe tomatoes in your hand or if you prefer courgettes, etc):

Click on a filename to preview what one looks like on your phone:

Again you can choose more than one file by Ctrl-clicking on them, then click the Download icon in the middle of the window to download them to your KG 800 (they'll go in the My Stuff, Images folder).

And as with MMF or MIDI ringtones, if you want to use your own pics as wallpaper, one way is to save them into the C:\Program Files\LGGSM\LGContentsBank\Contents\Picture\ folder of your computer (including creating subfolders within Picture if you wish) and transfer them to the phone with Contents Bank. See further below.

You can also use Contents Bank to delete any music or photo files that you previously downloaded to your phone - just select the file on the right and click the Delete button in the middle.

To disconnect the phone in this mode you don't need to safely remove hardware, you can just unplug it.

How to use downloaded audio files as ringtones and images as wallpaper

Ringtones. On the phone itself, to use your downloaded ringtones (1) go to the profile you want (menu, Profiles, pick the profile like General which is the default), choose Personalise, Ring tone, My Folder (this method will also let you pick as ringtones MP3 files transferred to your Chocolate's Music folder via the removable drive method) - or alternatively (2) go to My Stuff, Sounds, highlight the one you want, Options, and Set as ringtone. Obviously you'll need to activate the profile to get the ringtone associatd with that profile.

If you've changed a profile to include a particular ringtone and activated the profile, but it still rings with a different ringtone, check who's calling and are they in a caller group. Get to Caller groups via the Contacts menu. After you select a group there's a Group ring tone option. Check what that ringtone is. If there is a different group ring tone for a group, that will override whatever ringtone you set for the profile, so you need to change the group ring tone too.

Wallpaper. To choose a downloaded pic as wallpaper go to menu My Stuff, Images (or Others, if you downloaded the pic via the basic USB removable drive connection), pick the one you want, View, Options, Set as wallpaper (if you want to use an image from the Others folder you may get a "Copy to Images to set as wallpaper. Continue?" message - of course you should pick Yes). Another way is Settings, Display, Wallpaper, My Folder but it's not as good as that limits you to choosing pics in the Images folder. There are size limitations for wallpaper. Both GIF and JPG files will be fine as long as they're not too big - the official LG info is contradictory, I'm not sure if the limit is 100k as per pg. 6 of the storage manual or 30k as per p.73 of the main manual.

Some pics may look cut off in the Preview view in Contents Bank on your PC, but don't worry - after you transfer them to the phone, if you view them and in Options choose Set as wallpaper, the phone will scale them down to fit. The proportions may look a bit odd as a result, but it's better than not being able to use your own pics at all. Perfectionists may wish to scale the pic to the right resolution on their computer before downloading it!

(You'll see that My Stuff now has extra folders not mentioned in the manual - after Text there will be Images and Sounds folders.)

US phones, miniSD cards and music files

US phones have a mini SD card slot, lucky Americans (UK phones don't). Here's some helpful person's tip on how to play MP3s or other audio files from the SD card: create a folder on the card called "my_mp3" and put the music in there and it should work. The music essentials kit also apparently works for transferring sound files to the Chocolate. Thanks for the tips. If only my version took expansion cards!

LG PC Sync - contacts

Once you've done steps 1 to 4 above, IN THAT ORDER (especially step 3 THEN step 4 NOT the other way round), and keeping the phone slider open always, you can also launch PC Sync (click the pic below to enlarge it):

Again you choose the Option menu and pick the same numbered COM port as you did for Contents Bank. The main thing this does is to load your contacts info from your phone (both phone memory and SIM) into your PC.

Now although this program is called PC Sync, and there's an Outlook tab and Express (for Outlook Express) tab, so far I've not been able to read anything into PC Sync from Outlook, let alone synchronise contacts between phone and Outlook 2003 on my PC (the instructions say it's compatible with Outlook 2000 so maybe that's why - though Outlook Express doesn't work either).

The right side of the window shows the contents of your Chocolate cellphone. The left side of the PC Sync window represents your PC.

On the right (representing your phone) in the bottom half there are 2 tabs: Mobile and SIM. Clicking the Mobile tab (after you've correctly connected the phone as described above, of course) will show the contents of the contacts in your phone's memory, and the SIM tab displays the contacts in your SIM card's memory.

On the left (PC), in the bottom half there are 3 tabs: Phonebook, Outlook and Express. Phonebook will be the copy held on your PC of your Chocolate phonebook. The Outlook tab is for the contents of your Outlook address book (e.g. Outlook 2003), and the Express tab for the contents of your Outlook Express contacts. You'll see that if you click the Outlook tab (or if that doesn't work first click the Outlook tab then click the Read button in the top left quadrant), the PC Sync software reads in and displays the contents of your Outlook contacts (I think Outlook doesn't even have to be open for it to do that) - it may flash up "Adding data" and you may get messages like the following (with Outlook 2003 anyway):

You should tick the box in the "Allow access for" line and select a time period in the dropdown (max i.e. 10 minutes is best especially with a large address book), then click Yes. If you don't PC Sync won't be able to read in your contact details from Outlook. And if you have too many contacts it may not be able to read them in either (that's the problem I had when first trying all this. When I moved most of the contacts from Outlook into a separate file, it was fine).

After it's read in the details of your Outlook (or whatever) contacts, they'll show in the bottom left quadrant. Tick the ones you want to copy across to the phone or Select All to copy all of them. Important: if the phone is not already open, slide it open and keep it open throughout! (thanks to Anon). On the right, in the bottom right quadrant, click the Mobile or SIM tab depending on where you want the contacts copied to on the phone.

Then in the middle of the window click the >> button. (It works the other way round to transfer contact details from phone/SIM to Outlook/phonebook, using the <

Troubleshooting PC connection problems, improving connectivity

Timeout..., Initialising please wait..., Other application used this port. Failed to open... - sound familiar? Consider the suggestions in this post. That post also deals with possible ways to improve connectivity e.g. increase size of files transmissible via Contents Bank to the phone in modem mode.

Bluetooth connectivity

You can also connect the KG800 Chocolate to your PC via Bluetooth (Settings, Connectivity, Bluetooth).

I managed to get it to work with my PC's Bluetooth USB adapter (a Belkin F8T008) and even paired the Chocolate with my PC (just type in any number for the PIN, and the same number on the phone).

I got PC Sync to work over Bluetooth, loading contacts from phonebook to PC (in PC Sync make sure under Option you pick the right COM port for Bluetooth, just experiment and see). But note that according to the manual "you can only exchange data within the phonebook" over Bluetooth. I think that means that only PC Sync works properly with Bluetooth.

Certainly I couldn't get Contents Bank to work over Bluetooth, not even when picking the right (I thought) Bluetooth port, and I came to know and hate Error CME-250.

I also managed to transfer files over Bluetooth from the phone to my computer (by drag and drop from my My Bluetooth Places window - yours may differ) - but it just wouldn't work the other way round, I couldn't copy files from computer to phone.

Files of any type, it seems, can be sent via Bluetooth e.g. music, pics, to another phone. You can also receive files via Bluetooth and they should automatically be saved in the right folder, but I've not managed to test that yet.

One general warning though - always remember to switch Bluetooth off when you've finished (or in the sub-Settings set Visibility so only paired devices can view your Chocolate), or else you could be "bluejacked" with joke messages or worse.

Java - transferring Java apps to your phone via your PC

If you want to download Java apps e.g. games to your KG800 over the USB cable rather than doing an OTA (over the air) download using the browser on your phone (which costs in data charges), now see this post.

[This post was generally updated on 29 August 2006, mainly to add detailed info about syncing with Outlook/Express, and the Java section - with many thanks to the people who commented. Further updated on 2 October 2006 for the Java post, thanks to Anon! And another update on 1 Jan 2007, mainly to expand on ringtones and wallpaper, and again on 2 Jan 2007 to link to a new troubleshooting post, etc.]

293 comments:

"Now although this program is called PC Sync, and there's an Outlook tab and Express (for Outlook Express) tab, so far I've not been able to read anything into PC Sync from Outlook, let alone synchronise contacts between phone and Outlook 2003 on my PC (the instructions say it's compatible with Outlook 2000 so maybe that's why - though Outlook Express doesn't work either)."

That's my problem, too!Have you got any solution for it, or maybe an idea why it doesn't work?

First of all, I would like to thank you for your excellent and complete article. Thanks to the information you wrote, I have been able to finally connect the KG800 to my computer. The instructions in the handbook where not totally clear, and, if you do not follow the correct order on the installation of the software, activation of the modem on the phone and connection to the USB port, you cannot find the proper port on the supplied software.

I asked a question on the official web page of LG before I found this blog. Let's see how long it takes them to reply (if they do). Although that appears to happen with all official sites (it has already happenned to me with Philips and with Sony, it takes ages for them to reply).

Regarding PC Sync, I managed to do a sort of synchronization. And I mean a sort of because it does not really synchronize (as e.g. a PDA does) but it makes some type of "mix" with the data read from Outlook and the data read from the phone. So, e.g., after doing said synchro, you have all the data from your phone in Outlook (doubled if you have data from the same people), i.e. it appears to add the data from your phone into Outlook without checking if the same names are already there. Anyway, I found it a quite useful tool.

Thanks for the article. It helped me install and use the software and drivers. Unfortunatly, for some reason my chocolatebar does not allow me to search trough my contacts anymore. When I choose the option it just blocks. I have to close and open the slider to get access to the menu again.

Click on Outlook and then on the 'Read' button and it should read the contacts you have in outlook and display them in this window. Select the contacts you wish to transfer and click on the right arrow shown at the very centre of the PC Sync application. This should transfer contacts from outlook to your phone. The same can be done with the Schedule and the Memo.

I've done everything right I'm sure, time and time again, from reinstalling checking my ports etc.. but when i click on 'connect' in LG contents bank i just get a window saying initializing... please wait. i'm still waiting

Cia, thanks for your comments. When I said PC Sync didn't work for me, I meant that when I click the Outlook tab and then Read, nothing happens (sometimes I get a message in Outlook that a program is trying to access Outlook email addresses - which is fine, I know it's PC Sync that's trying to do that - but when I click Yes to allow access, still nothing happens. Other times I don't even get that message). Do you have Outlook 2002 Cia? My suspicion is that it will read in the contact details fine from Outlook 2000 but not later versions of Outlook.

Anon, I'm glad my post helped you connect - I agree, the manual's not much help at all and if you get the order of things wrong then it won't work at all.

As for PC Sync, I agree, I can get contacts from the phone added to Outlook if I select the desired contacts on the right and the Outlook tab on the left, then click the double left arrow in the middle to add them to Outlook. What I can't do is read contact info from Outlook to the tab on the left, then copy them to the phone. It could be because due to a previous attempt to synchronise with my Psion 5mx I have too many contacts in my Outlook, but I've cut them down yet and tried again and no joy - it won't populate the left hand side with existing contacts from Outlook.

I have Outlook 2003 and it still works now. I also got the message that a program is trying to access outlook email adresses, but than I can choose for which timeframe I want to allow access. When I say "for 10min" pc Sync uploads all my contacts from Outlook. Maybe you'll have to change your configurations in outlook itself.

My problem was, that I didn't see the arrows between the windows to confirm starting the synchronisation...

Had this phone a week and i have gone from loving it to loathing it in that time...the only good thing i can say about it is that it looks GREAT...sadly thats it for the good...now on with the bad!..battery life for a start is rubbish, and as you get little or no warning the phone is apt to turn itself off...lasts me about a day and a half tops. I have been unable using XP to use the software in any other but a basic way, as in i can drag and drop files into the phone folders but have been unable to synchronise any of my contacts or any other phone information so i guess i can't really comment on that, i would add that i have not had similar problems with my Nokia phone or Sony Ericsson phones. Even adding contacts (a basic function I would have thought for a mobile phone!)has proved problematic. Even in Korea i'm sure Names begin with a capital letter so why is the lower case option the first choice given in the Name field, meaning that for every name entered you have to scroll through abc to get to ABC to then have to scroll through 123 to get back to lower case entry...this wouldn't be a major problem if i could enter contacts through my computer but as mentioned i can't get the software to work...and reading comments online i'm not the only one! The next problem i encountered was that when i save numbers to my SIM card all my contacts appear twice, even when i have set my default phonebook...i don't want to see my contacts twice...and whats wrong with alphabetical order...I know it's not necessary for calling or texting but it is usual. Additionally you cannot add just any jpeg to a contact name, it has to be a picture taken on the phone in 72x72 format...great for the people i see face to face every day...not quite so good for the people i don't...and consequently need to phone or text!Texting and sending messages isnt a major problem..the T9 predictive text works ok except that yet again Abc is not the default setting so you have to scroll through to capitalise after a full stop, also if you fail to notice a word spelt incorrectly there is no option to highlight it and change it...you have to delete it and type it again..a little niggle but shows a lack of attention to detail! Bluetooth sending also isn't a problem...receiving however is..for some reason the phone fails to recognise the file formats of most things i've been sent...a video I made of my nephew at Christmas on my Nokia phone which i have sent numerous times to friends and relatives is apparently an unsupported file type...but when i forward it from my chocolate phone to any other phone i can then view it...how convenient! Similarly, i am unable to view most videos sent by media message and if i try to save them they are placed in the Others folder by default...and sadly you cannot view them or move them from there...perhaps the computer software would enable me to move the files or view them, but yet again i can't use that! Also it would appear the phone is incapable of viewing high resolution pictures bluetoothed or media messaged from other phones..I can forward them to my nokia phone i have had over a year to view them...but to be honest I CAN'T BE ARSED and nor should i have to! My bluetooth headset also doesn't like the chocolate phone (its a Motorola H700, six months old and the mutts nutz as far as i'm concerned) in a call it works fine but the phone does not allow last dialled number redial or the ability to end a call on the headset, you actually have to end the call using the button on the side of the phone or go into the call registry to redial the last number...which kinda takes away the handsfree element of using a bluetooth headset!! and once again i have to add that this hasn't been a problem on any other phone i have used it with...The MP3 player works well...the remote control for it doesn't, its rubbish, and the least said about the earphones the better, the nicest thing i have to say about them is that at least you can plug a more aesthetically pleasing pair into the remote jack. The camera seems to work ok...its nigh on impossible to take a self pic tho due to the touch sensitive panel (if you have this phone try it for yourself to realise what a bad piece of design work this is) but for taking other peoples pictures it works ok. The Organiser function i have barely touched...i notice it has no Birthday feature so if you can remember all your friends birthdays from year to year you can go and update them periodically...if you can do that though i can't really see why you'd need an organiser. The alarm feature is also badly thought out...firstly you have a poor selection of alarm tones (which i suppose works if you want to be woken up with an urge to throw your phone at the nearest hard surface)MP3's cannot be used as alarm tones...and also if your phone is switched off or in silent mode the Alarm doesn't go off....(most of my friends think this is not a problem but again i will say that even in silent mode or when switched off my Nokia and Sony phones alarms would always go off...and they had a snooze feature which again the LG doesn't offer). Finally given that the one plus side of the phone is that it looks so good, why would i want to put it in the manky suedette pouch that is supplied with it...why couldn't it come in a stylish leather case designed for it like the Motorola RZR does!! I guess at the end of the day if you don't care that the phone you are using is rubbish but looks gorgeous then hang on to your Chocolate...to be honest you'll be too busy watching reruns of Footballers Wives to use it much anyway, but if you want a decent phone that's had some thought put into how and why it is to be used i'd seriously recommend looking elsewhere (Nokia, Sony, Samsung...even Alcatel goddamnit!)Thankfully mines going back to Carphone Wharehouse tomorrow.

Thanks for your detailed comments Anon. I agree with a lot of what you say (see part 1 of my review), and you've mentioned a few negatives I hadn't highlighted too.

Cia at least has got Outlook sync working, but I haven't been able to yet (not even with setting timeframe for access to 10 minutes, I should have mentioned before that I'd already tried that). I don't think it's my Outlook config as I do get the same message and option to allow access for 10 mins. It just doesn't read them into PC Sync!

Forgive me if I missed anything, but I am so frustrated right now. I have installed everything in the correct order, yet when ever I start up Contents Bank, it does not let me select the LG USB cable. It doesnt even show up on the list, even though I have installed, uninstalled, reinstalled.. I honestly cannot work out what is wrong with it!

First, you must have installed the LG USB modem driver as mentioned in my post. Keep trying (ticking Modify as I said) until you know it's it's installed. (If it hasn't, when you activate the modem on the Chocolate then connect it with the cable, you will get new hardware errors).

Second, you must do things EXACTLY in the order I said in my post. If you launch Contents Bank before you activate the modem and connect the phone, you won't see a USB cable option under Port in Contents Bank at all - it just won't appear in the dropdown list for Port.

The LG USB cable option appears ONLY if you first install the modem driver correctly, activate the modem on the phone, connect the phone to the PC via the cable, THEN open Contents Bank and select Tool, Option, LG USB Cable.

Interesting comments - I got the phone, wowed by the appearance of course, then plunged into disappointment at looking at the features... but then learning to live with them. PC software took some experimenting with, but now works fine and syncs with outlook. Phone function is fine - contacts sorted and work fine. Took me some time to figure out how to 'hang-up' but thats something new to learn to. No voice activation is a pain - but i have never found a phone that is reliable at 80mph on a motorway that will capture my voice commands perfectly anyway..

Camera works well, no complaints, and I use the side button to take pictures as the front panel buttons are not sensitive enough, at the time needed.

My only qualm? cannot seem to download java apps and games. LG do not seem to able to help neither.

Hi there, first of all I’d like to thank you and others that take time to write articles like these.The LG Sync software in my opinion is absolutely rubbish, however if you follow this article to the T you should be fine. I’ve just connected the phone to an Acer Windows XP Laptop. The problem I had was with the LG Contents bank “Initializing”, but starting the modem before connecting the phone appeared to resolve the issue. I did also re-install the software once or twice.The phone is like a few girls I’ve met; looks awesome on the outside, but has some annoying problems underneath.No load speakerAwful text inputVery poor sync software Nothing I can’t live with though. It's the best looking phone I've ever seen, worth putting up with the problems. I’m sure that LG will improve these in the new models.Thanks again guys.

Ohh yeah and the keys have no backlight, what the h*ll is that about.....?Starting to be annoyed with the stupid design problems, if I wasn't getting a free PSP I think this would be going back in the post :-(

Thanks for the comments. Glad you liked the post, whitesugar and Anon. :)

I, too have learned to live with the lack of features/usability for the sake of the looks. And that point about using the side button for the camera is a good one. I too can't get the few Java apps I've tried to download - with the exception of the Opera mini browser, which does work (see Part 1 of my review).

Glad you sorted out the backlight issue Anon. I agree entirely about the bad T9 implementation.

I can't seem to connect this bastard via the USB cable no matter what I try to do. Keep getting timeout errors.

You got any tips I could try? I did everything that you suggested on the blog but no luck."

Hi. It's not just what you do but when you do them. The order of doing things is vital. You need to do things exactly in the order I said, e.g. activate the modem before connecting the cable, etc. Worse comes to worse, you could try uninstalling and reinstalling the modem driver?

Just want to relate my Motorola H700 bluetooth headset experiences which is different from the earlier post.

To dial the last number called, I tap the headset twice and it will make the call. After the first tap, you have to let the KG800 activate that number ( takes less than a sec ), then tap the headset again to call. To end a call, I just tap the headset, no problems here. A note here, I have *authorised* the paired bluetooth H700 under the *connections* settings - maybe earlier poster omitted this step ? If a call comes in with my headset off, just flip the power on AND tap the headset to make the connection. Actually I like the H700 performance with my KG800 better than with my O2 mini.

Hi everyone, I must say this. This is a great article. I do not think even the fellas in LG knows more about this phone that you do.

Now to my questions:I have possibly reinstalled the disc given a few million times and I still can't get the bloody Bank to work and neither is the Sync. With the Bank it keep saying that its initializing but nothing ever happenes. With the Sync, I can read my contacts from Outlook (2003) but I cant read anything from the phone, so i doubt it is connected. And the arrows in the centre is not lighted up so i cant do any transfering btwn phone and outlook. I am really frustrated.

I understand that some of you have managed to get it working, care to give some tips? I was so upset when I heard that it isnt compatible with Outlook 2003 but since some of you manage to get it going, so there is still hope i guess? crossing my fingers. thanks a great deal.

its me again. after i wrote the comment above, i managed to get it working, both the bank and the pc sync, so its not true that its not compatible with Outlook 2003. now the other problem i face, when it was working and while i was happily downloading files from the bank, it timed out!!! and hadnt been working since. i reinstalled everything and now i am getting the "initializing" prompt again. i remembered that when it was working, the comport was 10 and now its comport4, should it change?

Hey id just like to thank the poster of this helpful information that has helped me to connect my LG KG800 to the contents bank! Thanks very much, so much better instructions than the manual itself :DI dont suppose anyone knows how to use contents bank to transfer pics off the mobile phone to the pc as i cant seem to work out how to do it if it is at all possible? Many thanks

(1) first the good thing: if i connect the cable i get access via file explorer to the mobile. just like an usb stick. no menus no software. great.

(2) now the bad thing: if i try to use pc sync or the contents bank i cannot get the connection. i have chosen 'LG USB Cable(COM4)' as connection. behavior is really strange:- contents bank: i click on 'connect', no dialog, nothing happens. i click again: error message 'Other application used this port. Failed to open 4 port'. Grmpf- pc sync: i click on 'read', wait dialog appears, waiting waiting..., then error: "No reponse from mobile. Please check connection or baudrate". Funny to mention that you cannot modify the later in this app.

I am having same problem as the last persons didI am able to connect with the windows explorer, but when I try to do with the modem I get the anoying message Cannot open COM 4 port..I have spend like 10 hours with this. and I am already frustaded. I test the LG modem under modems in control panel and works perfec. I hope somebody can help

I have issues with USB connection but it works perfectly fine if I use bluetooth to sync with my outlook 2003. The first time it failed after importing about 20% of the contacts but the second time works fine. Make sure you delete the 20% of the contacts you imported or you will get duplicates.

The instructions above worked perfectly first time!!! Im using Windows XP sp2 with Outlook 2003 and the LG usb cable and i was able to sync my outlook contacts list with the LG using PC Sync. It is GREAT!!! Not only that but on my phone i can now see multiple contact details per name such as address, email, phone numbers, etc...

I also tried sending an email and it was brilliant. Didnt require any of the crap nokia pxt or mms settings that you usually have to download to get gprs working.

Only downside ive seen so far is that there is some limitation on how many people you can assign per group in your contact list.

deos the phone have bmg mode??which is whild you do other things in your phone u could listen to music??i think it's called multi tasking function. i heard korean version has this function on this phone.please reply thank you.

i recently received a samsung e900 upgrade and although its similar to chocolate it didnt look as good and the touch screen was too sensitive and even picked up from my face when on a call and beeped annoyingly, i sent it back and got a chocolate. after reading reviews i was in two minds i even played about with a friends one as i wasnt sure. i have to say that nokia is still my fave for overall use but take a look at the latest ones.........looks are nothing compared to the chocolate! its great for people who call and text, i'm not a computer genius but still worked out how to download mp3 which to the naff standard ring tones. if you have a pc at home you only need a basic phone and if it looks this good who cares if it doesnt do much else. people seem to forget.... its a mobile phone!

Got this phone the other day... LOVE IT!!!...much better than any other nokia, motorola, sony phone i have had V3 etc.... Just wanted to note that it doesnt only connect to a pc.. I just plug the usb into my Apple macbook Pro and its as easy as pie. Drag the music from itunes into the songs folder and in around 4-5 seconds the transfere is complete.

Getting really frustrated. I used this article when I first got the kg800 to successfully use the ContentsBank.

Now, when I try to activitate the modem, and then connect with the USB cable, then open up ContentsBank, I get the dreaded "initializing...please wait".

I don't know what changed between then and now. So, when I activate the modem on my phone, then connect the USB, nothing happens: the screen on the phone just remains as my wallpaper....and the computer doesn't even recognize the phone (it's not there when I click "my computer")

I have no idea what is going on. I've re-installed the software, I've powercycled the phone, i've taken out the sim card, i've crashed the phone, everything.

I had problems with both the contents bank and the pc sync. I found a re-install and then a modify (the usb modem driver seems to get installed even if you click remove!) worked. I then got a comm port busy error so I changed the device settings for the comm port (whilst the phone is plugged in) in device manager. I chose comm port 20 and things then sprang into life...

I am in US and managed to get this phone a couple of days ago. I have to tell you all that when I got the phone I loved it but now I think my son's free phone with no features is much better. I have had sooooo much problem in connecting this phone with PC using USB cable. As posted here, I first loaded the software, then turned the modem on on the phone then connected to PC via USB cable. Nothing happens. The phone or any other form of new hardware does not show on the USB device manager. And ofcourse no connection either. I tried to connect throug PCSYNC! Nothing!! I found out if I powerdown the phone, connect the phone to PC using USB cable, and then turn the phone on, it is registered as a unknown device n USB Dev Manager. But then every thing stops there. I tried to update the drivers but the windows keep telling me that it has the best driver loaded. If I click on driver info! it says no driver has been installed! Is it possible that the drivers are not being copied to a proper driver folders! I have wasted more than one week and made enemies in my family as I have spent soooooo much time in trying to solve this problem. Any help is appriciated! If you have any suggestion, please email me at upinder@pacbell.netthanks

hi. I just got this phone and i am having problem setting it up. More specifically, i cannot seem to have a removable drive on My Computer when i connect my phone and PC via the USB cable provided. It's driving me crazy. I can't transfer any mp3 etc. please help

Thanks for all your comments. Sorry I've not had the time to post much lately let alone respond to the comments! Catching up now with the questions... (and to those who just said Thank you, thanks for posting - it's really good to have some appreciation!)

C-Bass, glad you sorted it. The order of doing things does matter, with this (and some other USB things too, I've noticed).

Anon with the Motorola H700 bluetooth headset, thanks very much for the tips.

Healthandhealth, I'm glad you got it working. Can you set out for the benefit of others exactly what you did that worked? And yes if it's now saying COM port 4 for the LG USB cable you should change it to that and it should work. If still no joy then I guess you'll have to contact LG support... (but try what this commenter did first)

Sarz, to transfer pics from the phone to the PC see the heading Basic USB Connection in my original post. You go to Windows Explorer and look for the KG800 as an extra Removable Disk. Navigate to that, and look for your pics - not had the chance to check but it should be under the Photos folder or the Others folder. Just copy the photos you want (Ctrl c or rightclick then choose Copy), navigate to the folder on your C drive that you want to copy the pic to, and paste it (Ctrl v or rightclick then Paste). To move it, Cut instead of copy.

Anon and Anon - I can only suggest that you try it in EXACTLY the same order as I said in my original post, particularly, as C-Bass discovered, you must NOT open the Contents Bank or PC Sync programs until AFTER you've activated the modem on the KG800 AND connected the KG800 to your PC. If no luck then contact LG support (but try what this commenter did first).

Maestroguru - I think you have to transfer manually, using the arrows in the middle of PC Sync to transfer selected contacts from phone to PC or vice versa.

Anon - thanks for confirming Bluetooth works fine. I noticed that too when I initially had problems with the cable connection.

JJ - glad it worked for you. And email too, fab! The limitation of people per group sounds familiar, I've had an email (rather than comment) on this, it seems to be 30. I'll edit my post to make that clear. Any luck with games yet? I've only managed Opera, no other Java programs I've tried to load on it have "taken".

Anon - yes you can create new contacts in PC Sync. It seems to create a phonebook on your PC (separate from Outlook). On the left bottom half, click the Phonebook tab. Then in the top left click New and a box pops up for you to enter a new name, phone number etc. It will be added to the bottom of the list on the Phonebook tab. Just tick that new item, click the double right arrow >> in the middle to send it to your phone's internal memory or SIM (depending on which tab on the right - Mobile or SIM - you've selected).

Danny - BMG or multitasking - sorry I've not been able to get it to play music while doing something else. If while it's playing I try to switch to e.g. texting, the music stops. But you can listen to music and when a new call comes in it will interrupt the music so you won't miss any phone calls, at least. See my original full review of this phone. Has anyone else had any luck with this?

Anon - thanks for clarifying that it works with a Mac too. I think as a removable drive it's fine with PC or Mac, it's just that the Contents Bank and PC Sync software are PC only.

Anon - as you can see lots of people have had the Initialising problem. Looks like you've tried everything. I can only suggest contacting LG (but try what this commenter did first). If I figure it out I'll post about it, but what Anon said sounds like the best bet.

Emma - sadly, no. I find that annoying too, that the text alert volume can't be set, and it's far too soft for me especially in a noisy environment - see my original full review of this phone under Personal Wishlist. If anyone works that out, I want to know too!

Anon, thanks very much for your helpful comment on modify and device manager, I've referred several people to it as you can see!

Anon (upinder) - it's important to note that it works DIFFERENTLY via USB and in modem mode. For USB mode, you don't need to do anything - just turn the phone on first, connect the phone, and go to Windows Explorer or the equivalent for a Mac, and you can view the contents of the phone and its subfolders, and copy files to and from it (do NOT connect the phone then turn it on, it won't work if you do it in that order, it has to be switched on before you connect it to the PC). But for the modem mode, it does NOT seem to operate as a "normal" USB device - the modem mode is ONLY for using with the Contents Bank and PC Sync (and Internet Cube, I think). So it depends what you want to use it for. Try removing or modifying and reinstalling the modem drivers first, it took me several goes personally before it would work. Also try NOT opening the PC Sync or Contents Bank software yet. Assuming you've installed the drivers etc as indicated in my post, first activate the modem, then connect the phone, THEN launch the software. If that still doesn't work, my usual suggestion of what this commenter did then LG support...

Anon - sorry I don't know what to suggest if you connect it via USB and can't find a removable drive (you've refreshed the Windows Explorer via View, Refresh and checked everything under My Computer, right?) What version of Windows do you have, is it XP or only 98? 98 isn't great for USB.

Hey, thanks for such an insightful review and detailed description of the chocolate, i got mine last week and i have to say i am very impressed! the only problem i am having, (which i do not think anyone else has had) is that after installing the software, the phone connects etc, and the sync and everything works fine. The problem is, when i shutdown my computer and restart it, it refuses to sync. I get a 'timed out' error. But uninstalling and reinstalling the software will work, but again after restarting my computer i get the same problem. Is there anything i can do to solve this issue, as the uninstalling and reinstalling is so annoying, and i dont think its doing any good to my computer!

Hi. Could anyone explain how I et photos to display as contacts. I have both photos I have placed on the phone via the USB cable and also photos taken with the inbuilt camera. When I edit the contact and try to add a photo it comes up with "phonebook picture empty". Thanks in advance

i have a MAC, reading the LG manual there was no mention of compatibity with MAC's - for example MP3 section only tells you how to transfer to PCs - but plugged it in and it was fine - just drag and drop - no problems.

hi ok ive had this phone for a while now and im in love with it HOWEVER i still dont no how to put a photo in for a contact, When I edit the contact and try to add a photo it comes up with "phonebook picture empty". im sure it must be possible to do this but im jus unsure of how to do it and were to begin...hope u can help me...

gee thanks you very much for the step by step advice on the contents bank and how to upload the stuff from it ...ive been going around in circles for the last three days..... thanks pleased choloate user karx.

It seems that I can't assign a different speed dials to a contact with more than one number in it (e.g. fixed line; mobile). The result is that it allways assigh the first number of the contact to the different speed dilas which is is rather strange. Did anyone manage to do it different?

A Big Thank You, CIA. Today was the second day of me trying to synchronize my LG - without any result. After I read your step-by step post everything came in it's place - 674 names edited and synchronized in my new KG 800.

Uploading Contact PicturesI found out that uploading your own contact pictures is quite easy. Here are the steps:1) Take a picture with the phone in the 72x72 pixel size.2) Get an image on your computer, and use any imaging software (MS Paint) to make the file exactly 72x72 pixels.3) Save the file as a 24 bit .bmp.4) Connect the phone via the cable (do not turn on the phone modem)5) 'Save As' the file, and overwrite the 72x72 photo that you just took with the camer. (The name must be the same)6) That's it.

Uploading JAVA via Contents Bank1) Open the config.inf file in the Contents Bank folder.2) Change "EXIST_JAVA=N" to "EXIST_JAVA=Y"3) Create a "JAVA" folder in the Contents folder.4) Put in .jar (and corresponding .jad) files into the new JAVA folder.5) Turn phone modem on and connect.6) Upload.

Here is how I go my phone to sync with and get Outlook contacts over to my phone. It was fairly confusing. It needs to be done in this exact order:

1) Activate Modem in Options/Connectivity2) plug USB cable into PC (the screen should be dark)3) start LG PC Sync4) import contacts by clicking OUtlook tab and Select All5) Slide the phone open (this is what I missed)6) Click Read on the Mobile side7) the arrows in the middle should not be darkened and you can click on the arrow pointing to the right to import to the phone..

I have followed the guide after much frustration. I started to make some progress as I got 30 contacts across from Outlook to the phone over Bluetooth. After this it seemed to time out when the phone was being read. After this I couln't make any more progress.

I have uninstalled everything and re-installed, but still no luck.

The message which I get is "No response from mobile. Please check connection or baudrate"

I will save my review because there are lots of reviews already. My major concern with the phone is that even when the phone is open, the display shuts off after some certain amount of time. Not only that, but also while talking! So, suppose you need to talk to an automated phone that asks you pressing some button once in a while. It is very annoying because every time you need to press a button you need to press the button twice - 1st to activate the keyboard and then to really input the number.

So, my question is, have anyone found a way to disable the automatic-display-shut-off "FEATURE" of this phone? If yes, this will be amazingly helpful to me.

I know exactly what you mean. That is a very irritating problem that doesn't seem to have a solution. Because of this problem, even calling VoiceMail becomes a hassle. At this stage, I have no solution.

Maybe we can reverse-engineer their software and do a "fix" that disables this great "feature"..

Btw, what is your experience with LG customer support? If I send them a mail, is there any chance that they will reply? Cause I would really like to know whether they plan to fix that sometimes in the future...

Hi again!I still have the problem with putting java into the phone. First of all, in the config.inf file there was no line with "EXIST_JAVA=N", but anyway I wrote one with Y.. Then I made a folder Java.. Connected my phone to the pc and downloaded the jar file.. But where does it put it on the phone? I think I'm making a mistake somewhere but don't know how to make it right. Thanks for the help anyway:)

hii!i am wonderin..must the songs be in a certain file type to be able to load it into the phone? i cant seem to be able to click on my songs besides those that the disc gives =( please help me! thanks alotttt

i just got the phone today, and im trying to get my mp3 files to play as ringtones. i didnt buy the music essential kit, therefore i didnt get the software and usb cable. but i did buy the 2gb sd memory.

hmmmm im thinking of getting this phone but im not sure. first off it looks like a girl would buy this.(im a guy) second off the touchpad i heard sometimes doesnt work :S. i just wanna no if anyone had problems wit the touchpad and if any guys bought this.

To anybody that owns and knows how to operate the LGPCsync software that comes with the LG KG-800. I installed everythiing properly according to this post, but for some reason I still cannot download wallpapers or ringtones from the LG content bank into my phone. The software just keeps saying "initializing please wait".........Somebody help me with this problem pleasssse.

can someone tell me how to upload ringtones and wallpapers using bluetooth? it just won't connect to the phone when i hook it up via bluetooth. it connects to the computer, but when i use the contents bank or bitpim, it won't connect. :( someone email me or something on how to do it, thanks.

Stupid question but I thought this might work unless I'm doing something wrong.1. I have a 1gb microSD memory card2. I bought a microSD card reader with USB.3. I figured I could plug the memory card reader with the memory card in it into the computer and download the songs from my hard drive into the memory card.4. Then take the memory card and plug it into my phone and wallah music would be there, but the problem is, it doesn't work. Is my thinking right?

It seems that from my experience anyways, that if your chocolate is from verizon, you have no choice but to buy the music essentials kit that comes with the usb cable, connect that to your comp and just plug into the phone. after that, start up bit pim, and select other cdma phones and com port to auto, and it'll auto detect for you. it was just that simple for me after trying so hard to connect it usuing bluetooth. using bluetooth is impossible.

General review of Chocolate phone with tips. There are more details about the phone generally (not just the computer connection bit) in my broader review of this cellphone, which may be useful to some of you. (This post looked just at connectivity.)

Timeout, initialising... - , I'm not sure what's causing b100 and others' "timed out" problem (or the "initializing" problem) but I am going to raise it (and other issues) with LG's PR people who lent me the phone for review, and hopefully they can get LG to help.

Photos for contacts - already covered in comments (and briefly mentioned in my original review). You can only have pics for contacts if the pics are 72x72 pixels in size. You can take photos in this size using the KG800, or edit them down to that size.

*#06# just gives you the IMEI number or serial number of your phone. It works on all phones not just the KG800. No idea about the other codes someone set out, though. I expect the first one sets the language of the phone to English. The other seems to give info about the phone but I've no clue what, it's very programmer (I had to switch the phone off to get out of that screen).

Java - I've added a bit to the end of my post to expand on what Anon said about how to transfer Java apps to the phone via USB. I've got the Contents Bank to recognise a test Java app, but it just won't copy it to the phone, I just get a message saying it's not an *LG Electronics Java app! Talk about restrictive.. if anyone can explain how to get round that please let us all know.

Speed dials - sorry, I can't assign more than one number to a single contact myself, let alone assign speed dials to such a contact! So I can't help there.

SD card and ringtones - I updated my post to link to someone's tip about MP3s on the card. The UK phone I got doesn't have a card slot.

Touchpad - yes it's temperamental sometimes. I talk more about the touchpad in part 1 of my review of the Chocolate phone. See the "long and slow" bit on the touchkeys.

Uploading files - if you can't upload files larger than 50k via the Contents Bank, have you tried just the USB connection (without activating modem), drag and drop the file into the phone as a removable drive?

Bluetooth - you can use PC Sync over Bluetooth, but NOT Contents Bank. Even transfer of files TO the phone (though not from it) is dodgy, or at least I couldn't make it work. I've beefed up my original post to cover this point.

Ringtones and profiles - if you've changed a profile to include a particular ringtone and activated the profile, but it still rings with a different ringtone, check who's calling and are they in a caller group. Get to Caller groups via the Contacts menu.After you select a group there's a Group ring tone option. Check what that ringtone is. If there is a different group ring tone for a group, that will override whatever ringtone you set for the profile, so you need to change the group ring tone too. I've updated my post to mention this.

TO all Those who cant use photos for Caller IDS or who find their phonebook picture empty

while taking a picture with the camera take a pic in 72X72 size (Menu - 6 - 1 - left key - size and then select 72X72)and then it automaticaly appears in the phonebook pictures :P enjoy ur chocolate !!!Mudit

I was able to force the KG800 PC Sync software to import from my Palm Contacts list by doing the following:

1) Make sure you only have these 7 fields in your .csv file: Name,Mobile,Office,Home,Fax,Email,Group

--I exported only my "lastname" field (no firstname) and as you can see no address, many other fields.2) edit your new CSV file and make sure it has: Name,Mobile,Office,Home,Fax,Email,Group as it's first line (put an Enter after Group)3) You should be ready to go now.

After importing you can edit the info. Follow the other advice listed here to get the software working as I did and you should be cool.

i read in the manual that you can transfer your sms from the sim to the your phone. HOW DO YOU DO THAT? i haven't seen any option/ way to do so. anyone have any idea?? another huge peeve is that it seems like you are unable to save ANY sms from the phone to your SIM card.. so how do you transfer sms(save) that are important?? esp with only 150 spaces...

These instructions also work (apart from a slightly different menu location for the modem option) on LG's rather lovely new KG320. Having previously damned the PC software in my blog, I now find it works perfectly. Big thanks to Improbulous for the instructions - you have earned yourself a highly complementary posting! :)

Has anyone any experience of updating the firmware? The language thing is quite good but it doesn't have mine - romanian.. I've seen that there may be some way of doing this - can anyone point me in the right direction.

Hi,First, thanks. Without your help I'd never have got my KG800 talking to my PC. Now it is.Am I being particularly dense? I ask because I cannot find anyway of uploading entries via PC Sync from the 'pc' window of the phonebook tab to the 'mobile' window. Having entered all my contacts laboriously into the software, this is a real pain.What am I missing?Dr Fish101

According to a few posts, you should be able to connect the phone directly to a mac computer via usb...is there anything you have to do besides that because when I do that, nothing happens..at all...on the phone or computer. I have an imac g5 w/intel and am running osx tiger....anyone have any suggestions?

Is there anyway to change the message tone to an mp3 or anything other than the rubbish ones that are already on the phone? Every other phone i've had i can do this but i can't seem to spot a way on the chocolate.Am i destined to have a car horn as a message tone for the rest of my life?! I need to be quirky! *quietly weeps*

In order to be able to download java apps you can try to edit the .jad file andinsert the following line at the end: MIDletX-LG-Contents: XXXXXChange XXXXX to the model name listed in config.ini (MODEL_NAME=XXXX)

Uploading JAVA via Contents Bank1) Open the config.inf file in the Contents Bank folder.2) Change "EXIST_JAVA=N" to "EXIST_JAVA=Y"3) Change "MODEL_NAME=XXXX" to "MODEL_NAME=KG800"4) Create a "JAVA" folder in the Contents folder.5) Get a .jar file, make the corresponding .jad file.6) Open the .jad file with Notepad, and add this line to the bottom: "MIDletX-LG-Contents: KG800"7)Put .jar and .jad into the new JAVA folder.5) Turn phone modem on and connect.6) Upload.

Verizon's "Music Essentials Kit" uses Windows Media 10 to sync mp3's. It comes on the installation CD . I already have Media Player 11 on my PC and 10 won't install. LG tech support says there is no PC Sync software for the chocolate yet. Where is everyone getting PC Sync?

hi, my connection is ok, but the only two folders i have are pictures and ring tones, how do i add mp3's on to it????? i previously had a sony ericsson, and all u had to do it drag and drop, how to i transfer mp3's into the contents bank???? plz help, thanks!!!!! famida01@hotmail.com,

Thanks very much everyone for the continuing kind and useful comments.

SMS from SIM to phone - you can transfer contacts from SIM to phone, and vice versa, but for SMS I think normally they're saved ONLY on the phone. The only mention I can find in the manual about moving SMS says "SIM message means that the message is exceptionally stored in the SIM card. You can move this message to the phone." I think this means that if the phone memory is full it will save texts to the SIM, and in that case you can later move the texts to the phone if you free up enough phone memory. I can't see that you can do it the other way round, unfortunately.

No idea about upgrading firmware, sorry.

Mac - also no idea on getting the modem to work with a Mac. But other Mac users have reported that it shows up as an extra drive if you connect it via the USB cable to your Mac. Is nothing showing up on your file manager at all?

Dr Fish - can't add more on PC Sync than described in the post, use the >> button in the middle of the PC Sync window.

bubblegumcrash - instructions are in the post on how to transfer MP3s to your phone over USB, you must put them in the correct folder and set your profiles as stated.

Anon - PC Sync software is part of the package that comes with the CD (in the UK anyway). I provided the download link in my post but I see LG broke it so I've updated it - here it is again (also check out the software for other phones e.g. the KG920 on this page), but on your own head be it if it doesn't work or messes up your phone, as these are specifically UK versions - you have been warned!

As with many of her new toys, I've been asked to figure out how to use my girlfriend's new phone. The poor instructions and my poor Spanish made you guys very helpful. Plus it killed an hour at work. Thanks to all.

Your info was so fantastic.My boyfriend had tried and failed to use the software that came with his phone and i was almost about to give up too. Without your help i would never been able to get it work!Thanks so muchLeanne

Hi! I have just one question that I'm trying to find an answer to all day long.I just can't belive that CALENDAR has memory for ONLY 20 items!!????I try tu put birthdays, appointments etc. but sweet Chocolate says: OUT OF MEMORY!!!!!!HEEEEEEEEEELP!

just got the phone the other day (US). haven't had any problem sync'in PC to phone and i have downloaded my music to the phone successfully but i'm getting a little frustrated that i can't figure out how to MY music that i put on the phone as my ringtones. did i miss the instruction somewhere? or do i get to take this phone back and get something less flashy like a V3?

So, i just got the white chocolate yesterday. & also the music pack, because it was free. with the music pack, all it does is sync music into the phone. so, i DLed the UK program [didn't come in the US version] installed it, etc. the next step says to open connectivity or something like that under settings? i don't see it. any US people get the uk program to work? or am i stuck with buying a microSD for it?[planning to anyways.]

Hey Aitor,I'v done all the things you said but when I start ContentBank there is no JAVA icon... I first thought it was beacause of my dutch software version, butt after trying the UK version the same problem occured...can you help me??

(maybee they have changed the software cause they want you to pay for their games... in that case I'm searchin for an older version of the LG ContentBank...)

o my gosh!! ive had this fone like 3 days now and i jsut want to put music on it!! but everytime i try n connect it, it comes up and says time out!! i dont get it ive tryed everything:(!! its really annoying!! is there anyway of getting it to work!

My question is I'm running window 2000 pro with media player 9 on my computer. Is there any way I can use this software without installing window xp and media player 10. Do I need to upgrade to window xp is the only way to share music from pc. I tried to install the software for phone from cd and gets only error message. Please advise...

i read your blog and iv tried to do everything you have said so many times but when i get to the part when you press the connect button it does not seem to connect it just sais in a box initializing... please wait.

i have done everything you have said and everything i can do but it just wont connect so the i cant press the download button.please help me!!!

Hello,I am trying to figure out how I can transfer an image (under 30kb) to my phones "Other" file, then somehow access that file to use as a wallpaper. IN order to change th ewallpaper, I have to go into "my graphics" folder, but I don't know how to get that image from "other" to "my graphics"??

Thanks you so much to the person that wrote this guide it the best one i seen U SAVE MY LIFE i was about to sell that phone and i got some thing to ask can you put like and video clip in to the phone if yes tell me how please

hello I still got win 98 se, everything works fine except for the removable disk drive. It does not show up at all in my computer or as an icon at the left corner, could this be because I have an older CPU?

Hey,I'm on a mac, and I see that you can use the USB for transferring movies and mp3s, but can you use isync (or 3rd party software) to sync your contacts? All my contacts are in my address book, and I've never had a phone with a GSM before, so I'd have to enter them all in manually. Anyone know? Thanks!

Thanks so much to this site for helping me solve the hassle with regards to the downloading of the images and tones..thanks a million! i know this isnt really related but i havent found any sites that can help me...i think there's some problem with the zoo zoo club on my phone..initially it saved my scores after each game..but suddenly it didnt save in the following games and the previous scores were all wiped out..anyone has any idea what happened? thanks so much

Heyyyou're article has helped me a lot with my new phone.. but i have a love for music and i'm having so much trouble trying to get it on my phone.. when i connect the phone.. it says USB mass storage device, but on My Computer when i double click the removable device it has absolutely no folders in it.. can you help me?

I just chose a chocolate, so excited about finally having an mp3 player... but started getting worried since I've been strongly considering getting a new mac. Looking at some of these posts, it sounds like it works-- however, will I need an additional memory card or are folks plugging the phone in directly? Are you dragging anything from iTunes, or just mp3-formatted songs? Thanks!

"i think there's some problem with the zoo zoo club on my phone..initially it saved my scores after each game..but suddenly it didnt save in the following games and the previous scores were all wiped out.."

(By Anonymous, at Sunday, December 10, 2006 3:06:30 AM)

same problem with me. can the game be reloaded? will it work in that case after reloading?

Does anyone know if the US Version (VX8500) can be hooked up the same as the UK Version (VX 800)? I skimmed through the comments and can't find anything that works for the US customers. I did see that the phones are built quite different.

i have managed to instal the software and i have managed to tranfer a pic from pc to phone, no probs!! the problem is it doesnt show any of my music files in the Contents Bank so i can download them!! it is really bugging me and i have tried everything!!

First of all, to change soft keys just go to SETTINGS & TOOLS then PHONE SETTINGS then SHORTCUT KEY and you can program each one however you like.

As for the comment above on how the default for the texting is set to ABC mode so the user must always reset it is false. To change the default texting option, go to MESSAGES on the menu, then press the left soft key to hit SETTINGS, follow it with option 1. ALL MSG, then hit 5. ENTRY MODE and select your desired default.

Help Please! Hi, I bought the Chocolate phone in Canada and I can't seem to change the internet soft key. There is no Tools and Settings menu. Also, I can't seem to add more than one phone number to a single contact. Please help!

HELP used and read the whole of this file, which has been fab, but i still cannot manage to pair my bluetooth ear piece with the lg800 chocolate phone, i have tried the normal way !!! but can someone give me an idiots guide of how to do so for the lg chocolate - as clearly nothing with this phone works in what would appear to be the "normal way" the handsfree ear piece is a Sony Erricson, many thanks in advance. please message here or sarah@onestopbridal.co.uk

Feel obliged to put something on this site as it has proved so helpful since getting my LG for Xmas. I've had most of the problems covered (and solved) on this site. So for Sarah with the Handsfree that isn't talking. This is one problem I actually didn't have. Try... Settings, Bluetooth, On. From the Bluetooth Menu 3. Handsfree Devices, then Options, (Your Bluetooth Handsfree needs to be on), Add New, (this will start a search for handsfree devices). Once found, it will probably ask for an access code (possibly 0000 - it was on my Nokia, but it should be in the instructions you had with the handsfree). Enter the code, and this should create the pairing.

Many thanks to those who took the trouble to leave expressions of appreciation (that's Anons x many, Stannmary, Stevenyr8, Monika, Stacey) - they sure help me on the motivation front. (This isn't a "board" by the way, to whoever left that daft comment, it's a blog I keep up in what little spare time I have, so I reply to comments only when I can, and this has garnered a huge number. I'm not getting anything for being LG's free support service y'know!) Many thanks are also due to those kind people who volunteered their helpful tips and suggestions.

Calendar - sorry I don't use it, but the manual p.46 at 4.2.1 does indicate it's 20 items, I agree that's pretty poor.

Using your own MP3s in the Music folder as ringtones - Jeremy, I've updated the post to spell out how to do this. See here. Unfortunately that's for the KG800 and the US VX8500 seems totally different.

Apart from the ability to save music on a memory card, which you still have to pay for, everything else about the US version seems designed to make you pay and pay for every single extra you need (even the USB cable).

US settings and connectivity for VX8500 - USchocolateuser, JumpmasterRT and others, well I managed to find the VX8500 manual and the phone seems totally different from the KG800. There doesn't seem to be a modem option (so no Connectivity setting). You seem to be stuck with V CAST / Windows Media Player 10 to transfer music from your PC (see p. 36 of the manual).

Timeout/Initialising problem - Chrissy & others, again I've updated my post above. Try this troubleshooting post for the Contents Bank and modem. However, if you just want to put MP3s on it, you don't need to use the modem, just use the Basic USB connection method.

Pictures for phonebook contacts - already covered please read this comment and this comment, needs to be 72x72.

Windows 2000 pro - sorry, I don't use that. If you just connect the phone with the USB cable, does it appear as a removable drive in Windows Explorer/My Computer? If so you should be able to transfer music files to it that way. But from what I've seen, the US version only works with XP and Windows Media Player 10. See above on the US phone.

Memory for songs - if you have the US phone you can buy a memory card, but if you have the UK version you're stuck, no expansion option is provided.

Image as wallpaper and TG800 - BigB luckily I think the TG800 is like the KG800 in this area. Just open the image you want in Other to View it, pick Options, then set as wallpaper.

Video clip - Stevenyr8, put the video clip in the Video folder. Use the Basic USB method outlined in my post. (Create a Video folder for it in My Media if there isn't one already). But it only plays video in 3GPP, 3GP, MP4 & MPEG formats, see this post.

Win 98 - I've updated my post. I think you need to install USB drivers for Windows 98 to get it to show up as a removable drive. If there aren't any on the CD or software download (check & see), you may not be able to use it in that way.

USB removable drive no folders - if it's empty try using My Computer to create a My Media folder with the Music, Video etc subfolders outlined in my original post (which I've updated). And copy your music into Music folder.

Ringtones as MP3s - Toronto TG800 I'm not sure what you mean? If you want to use your MP3s as ringtones, see this.

Music - memory card or phone - depends on your model. KG800 you can use the phone for MP3s. The other models I'm not sure if you have to have a card or if the phone is OK. Haven't got a Mac but Macs can recognise the phone as a removable drive if it's the KG800 or TG800.

Music & Contents Bank - please reread my post which I've updated so hopefully it's clearer. You don't need to use Contents Bank to transfer music so there shouldn't be any "timeout" problem. Just connect the phone as a removable drive and copy MP3s to the Music subfolder on the phone using My Computer or your Mac file manager.

Soft keys - can't change them on the KG800. Maybe you can on other Chocolate models. Thanks Anon for the howto for those!

Allow me to first thank you for this awesome blog site if it wasn’t for the help of this web site I would be lost in a sea of frustration. I have an LG TG800 Chocolate and unfortunately my problem also deals with setting my MP3's as ring tones. But I HAVE the MP3's on my phone I can load them in and listen to them no problem. But in your description it says go to "ring tone" and "my folder" but I don’t see them. I also checked "MP3 rings" but it’s empty. in the instruction manual it says I can set it up by going into my MP3 folder selecting the song I want and going into the options folder and simply selecting "set as ring tone" but alas I don’t have that either. Am I missing something here or is something not quiet right. Thank you in advance. Mike

Unfortunately I haven't got the TG800, though I've seen the manual online. So you've tried to highlight the song in your playlist (but DON'T open or select it, just highlight it from the playlist) and then tried the Options soft key (probably on the left under the screen) and there's still no option to set the ringtone? And you've also tried to select the song AND open it, and then pressed the Options soft key, and there's nothing?

Hi,I've read through the website and have tried everything. I have a mac and have been able to get the picture as jpg into the "other" folder on the TG800. However, there is no option to set as wallpaper, even when I view the picture. Is there something else that I should be doing? Please if anyone knows how to do this it would be much appreciated.

Anon, I don't have a TG800. What folders are inside your My Media folder on the phone apart from Music and Others? If there's a Graphics or Photos or Pictures folder, try putting your JPG in there. Then on the phone view the pic from that folder and check the options. Try that.

I have the LG KG 800 'chocolate' and there you should be able to put pics and animated wallpaper into yout 'others 'folder and then when you choose to view them .. there is an options menu down left in the window and there you can choose the option 'set as background' .. but that is when everything should work normally on your phone... :]]

hi, i have an LG chocolate TG800 and i've been trying to get a song in my MP3 folder to make it a ringtone. i've tryied what u guys said...hasent worked....read the manual....didnt help...just wanted to know if it was possible to put a song that i Rip'd from a cd to windows media player and get that as my ring tune.

are you sure that the TG800 has an expandable memory because i've looked everywhere for a card slot and can't seem to find one, but alot of websites seem to be giving false information because they are mistaking some of the features from the 8500 as the 800 so can anyone just tell me if the "TG800" has an expandable memory?

TG800 ringtones - yes, Anon, it is poss. I don't have a TG800 but you should copy your MP3 to the folder on the phone that says Music (inside the My Media folder), see the section on using the phone as a removable drive. And then you'll be able to play it and use it as a ringtone. If you don't know how to use your computer's file manager then I'm sorry that's beyond the scope of this blog.

TG800 memory - again I don't have one but based on the manual I believe it does NOT have a memory card feature. I don't know exactly which Chocolate models do. Please ask your local dealer.

heyy. thank youu so much for this. I was lyk completely lost at first and then everythin jst worked up until the connectin part. It said "other application used this port" and it wouldnt let me connect. HELP PLEASE !Email: shopaholic.pwincess@hotmail.com

Hi, I have got a new KG320. It's a nice gadget but the most important function (from my perspective) does not work. I was not able to set it up for connecting my PDA to interntet (Bluetooth - > GPRS). Bluetooth itself forks fine. GPRS works fine if I connect my PC via USB modem (great post on the top; I used a bit different procedure but the essentials were the same).

I am not a beginner; it took me 5 minutes to establish such a connection osim Motorola V535 or Siemens S55.

The problem is that the modem does not even start dialing. BT connection is established but then after some 10 seconds dropped. I have tried several AT commands to initialize the modem. The funny thing is, if I try to connect my PDA using a terminal window I can manually dial the "GPRS number" an the modem really starts dialing. There is NO CARRIER because I have no way how to enter User and Password information (I assume kind of CHAP protocol or similar). So, something is wrong in the very beginning of the sequence. Any ideas?

Well, im sure someone has already had the problem of installing Java appl on kg800 and maybe sharing the solution would be appreciated greately... at least by me. Im having problem installing Opera mini. While compiling it says...java.lang.outofmemoryerror. Any help please.

^||read the page and the comments... its been very usefull on how to connect.

to the person who made this site with all the usefull hints! THANK YOU! saved me so much time after realizing in the first 5 minutes that the connection wasn't going ot be made easy. (or with any instructions from them)

Hello improbulus, first off I wanna say this is the best article on the net about LG k800 I read it about 8 months ago when I first got my phone and it helped me heaps. Now I'm back here because I've decided my phone needs a makeover lol and I forgot how to set things up. There's one thing I don't think you've covered, and I've skimmed through the comments though I might have missed it. Someone mentioned it previously.

"Is there anyway to change the message tone to an mp3 or anything other than the rubbish ones that are already on the phone? Every other phone i've had i can do this but i can't seem to spot a way on the chocolate.Am i destined to have a car horn as a message tone for the rest of my life?! I need to be quirky! *quietly weeps*

*Ahem*

thanks

Bubblegumcrash"

"bubblegumcrash - instructions are in the post on how to transfer MP3s to your phone over USB, you must put them in the correct folder and set your profiles as stated."

I don't think the problem was addressed as he was referring to the MESSAGE TONE which the LG choc only has 4 types of. So I'm wondering the same thing, is it possible to change these 4 MESSAGE TONES? Help would be appreciated. I'll check back here in a few days. Thanks in advance!

Ive had my phone now for 3 days and every time i try to connect on the contents basnk it says 'other application used this port- failed to open 3 port' Therefore its not letting me download stuff onto my phone. Its really annoying me please please please please please please please !!!

if the gsm components are not working for you and you want to but a RINGTUNE i found away.... (for xp) go to control panel switch to "classic view" then you will see a floder named "folder options", open that ... go to the tab VIEW and find the option saying "show hidden folders" select it.... now when you go to your renovable disk you will see a ringtune folder and you can save full MP3 files to use one ur phone for your ring tone :)

I bought this phone 2 weeks ago and I love it (got the cute pink one!) Have to say though, I didnt even attempt the USB link. No phone I have owned has never successfully linked via USB so I nipped down Tesco and bought a Bluetooth dongle for £8.97 and haven't had a problem! Works fine every time! Would reccommend that to anyone rather than USB! Saves the insanity! It does everything I need it to do.Onoy think I am not highly impressed with is the inability to change the text message alert, 4 really dull jingles is a bit crap, but on the whole a lovely little phone.

Hey, thanks for the guide as it is pretty great. However, my girlfriend just got a chocolate and we can't figure out how to change the waiting music that people listen to when they call her...it's probably something really simple but we can't figure it out. Any help would be awesome. Thanks a ton.

Hello there,,,,, Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. I am stuck on one part. I have no problem getting the mp3 onto my chocolate,,, but i cant find it in the " my folder" option. Its there in the mp3 player,,, but it has no option to set it as a ringer there. Is there a hidden way to get it.

hello there,,,,,, i followed all your steps for the tg800 mp3 ringtone setup.,,, but i cant find it in " my folder". and when i play it in the mp3 player on the phone,,, no option appears that lets me set it as a rintones, please help

Yes it's true. This is by far the best site around for info on the Chocolate. Thanks for all the advice this far. I am finding problems with the PC synch application. When I try to read my outlook contacts,it doesn't read all teh contacts.I am using outlook 2003I have 1 set of contacts in Outlook so it can't be reading the wrong one.2. I have set the Outlook access to 10 mins, so it isn't cutting short from this. I believe it to be the PC Synch application software having a fault when reading Outlook, since all the data read from outlook always makes it onto the phone.I have a feeling I am going to have to copy them from my old phone (which synchs perfectly, NOKIA...) and then copy from sim onto the new one.

ppl thers no point in using the contents bank to transfer stufF. If using windows then just go to my computer-removable disk e-my media-and then you have all your stuff on there !!! MUch easier considering ot tokk me 3 days to try and get the contents bank to connect!!

I've searched through the posts above to see if anyone has reported this specific problem, but I could not find anything. My apologies if I missed a thread.

I am having problems with the camera feature on my LG TG800 phone. The camera worked fine when I first purchased the phone, but now, when I select the 'camera' feature, the window opens with the camera icon, but then the phone freezes in that window for about a minute, times out, and then returns back to the 'home' window in 'emergency only' mode.

I'm afraid that I may have deleted something inadvertantly when I was syncing my phone to my computer.

Has anyone else experienced this?

When I select the 'video camera' feature from the media menu, the phone just freezes in the media menu for about a minute and then returns to the home menu after a timeout with the same 'emergency only' message.

This is really frustrating, since it's a brand new phone and I'm not a complete goof when it comes to all things technological. This is my first camera phone, though, so I had pretty high expectations that I could *at least* use the camera feature.

Is there anywhere online that I can find the *original* file structure of the phone so that I can perhaps refresh it when syncing to my computer? Everything else seems to work fine - ringtones, mp3s, wallpapers - just not the camera/video camera.

I've tried restoring to the default settings and clearing the multimedia memory but nothing seems to work. Sigh.

I had problems with getting my bluetooth handsfree connected to the phone, too.

And I found out:1) turn on a bluetooth on the phone2) turn off your handsfree :-)3) press "On" button (on the handsfree) and hold for 6 seconds until "Connection" is shown4) go to Settings -> Handsfree Devices -> Options -> Add new...

Actually, all this is described in your handsfree manual. :-) Good luck!

Thank you! If it wasn't for your great blog I would never have found out how to turn it off lol. Is it thincky proof to use the usb to get your pics and videos onto your computer? Any help greatly appreciated.

OK GUYS I FIGURED IT OUT!!!!!THE REASON WHY SOME PEOPLE HAVE THE ISSUE WHERE IT SAYS "INITIALIZING... PLEASE WAIT" IT IS AN ERROR and HOW TO RESOLVE IT IS SIMPLE THE SOFTWARE WAS NOT MADE FOR NEWER COMPUTERS LIKE WINDOWS XP... SO IF YOU HAVE AN OLDER COMPUTER TRY INSTALLING THE LG CHOCOLATE SOFTWARE ON YOUR OLDER COMPUTER I GARANTEE IT WILL WORK.

NOTE* IF IT STILL ENDS UP HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM TRY TAKING OUT THE USB CORD AND PLUGGING IT BACK IN WINDOWS WILL THAN RECOGNIZE IT AND YOU WILL BE ABLE TO WORK.

WORKED FOR ME SO IT SHOULD WORK FOR YOU... IT DID NOT WORK FOR MY WINDOWS XP BUT IT DID WORK FOR MY WINDOWSS 2000

I have succesfully been able to sync my contacts from Outlook 2003 to the LG800. However, I have been unsucessful synchronizing my calander. I have tried several times (even tried saving my calander as a CSV and importing into LG PC Sync). NOthing seems to work. Any advice on how to have my calander sync properly with Outlook 2003?

So, has anyone figured out this MAC issue? I just want to connect my Chocolate to my Ibook G4 to transfer the movies I've taken off of it. The phone doesn't go into USB mode when I plug it in and the computer doesn't recognize that the phone is plugged in.

I tried bitpim- it was able to communicate with the phone and download things like the address book and calls list, but it was unable to show me the filesystem or retrieve the movies. Please email me if you have any info.

Thank you very much for this very informative and very detailed help on how to use your LG Content Bank. I've been trying to figure this out for months now since I got my phone and I got so frustrated about it. With your post, I was able to use and it work just like you said. Again, thank you so much. You made me love my phone even more. :)

Just to let you know that I'm going to be dealing with all comments on LG posts, both Shine and Chocolate, in one go soon - hopefully this weekend when I'll have some time to tackle the masses I've been getting on these subjects. So please bear with me a while longer.

(Unfortunately however I won't be able to answer any questions which have already been addressed in the original post or in earlier comments, simply for time pressure reasons.)

To those who simply said thank you - thanks for taking the time to comment. It's always nice to be appreciated and I'm glad my post was of help to you.

"Other application used this port"Timeout errors- please check out this post and see if anything there helps.

Vasja KG320 - sorry, I don't have a KG320 so I don't know what to suggest. It sounds like you know what you're doing and have tried all the logical things. How about LG support, or the retailer?

SMS messages to PC - not as far as I know. Similarly with making some messages read only. I fear you'll have to keep carefully manually deleting one by one.

Camille, Verizon VX8500 - no idea sorry, I've not got one. It looks like from the other people who've commented about Verizon that you may be stuck with having to buy their software. Has anyone tried downloading the UK software to see if it works?

Bubblegumcrash & Evolun, message alert tones, alarm - sorry you're right I missed the point there. I fear there is no way to change the not exactly edifying inbuilt text alert tones to MP3s of your own choosing. The text tones are way too soft as well. And I've not figured out any way to use your own audio files for the alarm. Anyone??

Ringtones and hidden folders - that's interesting, Anon. My PC is set to always show hidden folders and I wasn't able to see the Chocolate ringtunes folder or any other system folders on the Chocolate. Will give it another go.

Waiting music - that's down to your phone network rather than the Chocolate phone I think. Have a word with your phone company's Customer Services?

Allison, ringtones - that's odd. If you can see it in the MP3 player, have you tried highlighting it then pressing the Options button (left softkey)? Or, play the one you want, then while it's playing press the Options button? Should be able to set it as a ringtone from there.

Anupam, driver - just download the software, see the links in my post.

Al, Outlook contacts - sorry I don't know what to suggest. I've had trouble getting my Outlook contacts across, myself. Simon seems to have found a 30 contact limit, at least for him...

Contents Bank purpose - yes I agree about not bothering to use Contents Bank for music (and at the start of my post I covered simple USB connection). But you have to use it if you want to sync your contacts. And if you want to use the free ringtones and free wallpaper LG provide with that software.

BP, camera problem - try taking it back to the retailer if it's still under guarantee? I've sure never had that issue. Maybe it's a fault. If everything else is working fine including wallpaper, it's unlikely to be something you did.

Bluetooth - thanks for the info!

Internet connection - well it depends on what you want, Web, email? Have you got a data plan set up with your phone company so you can connect to the Net? Have you checked with your phone network for the correct settings for the Net? Net connection problems are often down to that.

MP3s invisible - yes, you won't be able to see the MP3s on the phone in Windows Explorer if you're syncing via Contents Bank. The phone is in "modem mode" then. You need to be in USB mode to see the files. That's covered at the start of my post, above.

Pics and videos - yes you can transfer most common types of pics and videos to the phone from your computer via USB. The instructions are at the start of my post, just put the phone in USB mode, connect it to the PC and fire up Windows Explorer or My Computer.

Sara Casey, iTunes - please see this comment. If the songs are from iTunes you probably can't play them except on iPods, that's down to Apple.

"Initialising.. please wait" and older computers. That's interesting, Anon, thank you. But sadly those of us who only have XP computers and up won't be able to try that.

Tom, sorry to hear that, have you tried uninstalling the software and reinstalling it? Particularly the drivers?

Calendar sync - sorry, no idea, others have had problems syncing and it seems that you're limited to 20 items only from the manual, which is ridiculous - maybe that's why you've got problems?

Ethan, Mac iBook G4 - have you made sure that the phone is switched on and set to USB mode before you connected it to the Mac and it still doesn't work? Other Mac users have reported that it does work with their Macs so I don't know what else to suggest beyond that, sorry.

Siddarth, caller group - sorry, I've never been able to figure out how to message everyone in a caller group, you have to do the list manually as far as I know. Has anyone else?

Hi.. I have a TG800 and I have no idea how to get files to anf from my computer. I've downloaded all the drivers and whatnot (phone did NOT come with CD) and I'm stuck as to what I should do. Any help would be great, thanks!

Hi, Thank you so much for the great article. I believe it helped a lot of people. However, I am one of few who have a problem with my software (the intializing problem) You mentioned that the software should be installed in a older comp, but the problem is I dont have anything older than xp. Is there another solution? Do I need the software to transfer music, video, and pics to my phone? Thanks so much. I look forward to your helpful aid.

All I want to do is simply "see" my phone as a device on my computer. I'm not even getting that far.

Specs:KG800 LG ChocolateBell Mobility ServiceVista Business OS

I thought it would be as simple as connecting the USB cable included to my computer... and it seemed it would be as it went ahead and installed three different drivers (the ones included in the package your providing in the link in your article)... but the phone is still not going into a "USB" mode OR showing up on my computer as a "usb removable device" or similar item.

Any ideas? I've found plenty of people with a similar problem. I'm also discussing with some people here:http://www.allthingsmarked.com/2007/04/05/howto-free-mp3-ring-tones-on-the-lg-chocolate/

Transferring music, pics, etc to your Chocolate via USB (Leona, Lily and several Anons - it would help you identify my answer if you leave your name!):

1. I only have a European model. It sounds like the US version is different and that they've disabled or changed the connectivity options in it. If so what I suggest may not work with your model. Please ask your supplier or LG in the US if after trying my suggestions you still can't transfer files.

2. You do NOT need Contents Bank (and so can escape the dreaded Initialising probem) to do basic file transfers. But you DO need to make sure you've installed the drivers, i.e. installed the software you got with the CD or downloaded. Just in case, install it all.

3. For basic file transfer by USB you must make sure the phone is NOT in modem mode. So turn the phone on, in the menu Settings, Connectivity, Modem make sure the modem is OFF i.e. "Do you want to activate modem"? should be a NO. Do NOT close the slider, leave the slider open. Go back to the home screen (if that doesn't work, try again and DON'T go back to the home screen just to see!)

4. THEN connect the phone via the USB cable to the PC and you should be able to see it as a removable drive in your file manager, and drag and drop files etc.

If despite all that the phone is still not showing up in My Computer or Explorer or on your Mac, I'm afraid I have nothing further to suggest, try the company you got the phone from or LG support in your country. Good luck!

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